Drucker took a lot of risks predicting the inevitable decline of commodity prices, as well as the current East Asian/Japanese financial difficulties, when this book was first published in the mid-1980's. More importantly he details the reasoning behind his predictions. Drucker once again demonstrates with this book why he is the Godfather of all management "gurus"!!

I encountered with this page while trying to order English version of The future of industrial man, which Japanese version I just finished.

This book is one of the most exciting writing by P.Drucker.

I achieved or rather confirmed, the basic platform of the socio-econmy we live in. I have learned that the value or discipline of the economy and society of developed nations is not based on the surrealistic ideas but on the accountable prosess of the hsitory.

That being said, the progress of present economy of each nation should have its reference in the world history as well as in its own.

Peter F. Drucker would not want to be an icon. But, he is so charming!

At last a book on globalisation that avoids vague generalisations and dismal futurology. Robert Went presents the main economic arguments from an accessible, non-dogmatic Marxist perspective. This book would be a great tool for anyone involved in anti-globalisation mobilisations.

In spite of a well-crafted selection of essays from Mary Parker Follett's lectures and writings, it is unfortunate that the subtitle of this text may be misleading. The significance of this publication is not that Follett wrote in the 1920's -- or even that she was a prophet of what has been discovered in management to date. The significance of this text is that it may help the reflective practitioner and theoretician create the future of management on a more sound footing than we have accomplished throughout most of this century. As Peter F. Drucker, Warren Bennis and others have pointed out, Follett developed her approach to management on a fundamentally different assumptive base than did her contemporaries. What remains to be articulated is the fundamental character of that contrast and their implications. These questions will not be answered in the commentaries, but there is an implicit invitation to consider the issues. One may find that Follett's assumptions anticipate our own time in its complexity, turbulence, and uncertainty, more adequately than most writers or practitioners who are currently grappling with these sorts of issues. If you are a reflective practitioner or a theoretician, and wish a leg-up on the future, this is a good place to start.

This workbook is a terrific addition to Jim Austin's THE COLLABORATION CHALLENGE. It provides a process for nonprofit organizations to Prepare, Plan, Develop, and Renew alliances with businesses.

The Drucker Foundation shares this book and valuable resources on its Web site. With this volume you can share the approach with your colleagues and the Board of directors. There's also a half-hour video that illustrates five examples of nonprofit-business alliances.

Peter Drucker is probably the greatest management thinker of the 20st Century. He has been Professor at New York University and at 83 years old still teaches at the Graduate Management School of Claremont University, California. This McKinsey Award winning article was published in the September-October 1994 issue of the Harvard Business Review.

In this article Drucker discusses the theory of the business, which is the assumptions on which the organization has been built. "These are the assumptions that shape any organization's behavior, dictate its decisions about what to do and what not to do, and define what the organization considers meaningful results." According to the author the theory of the business has three parts. First, there are assumptions about the environment of the organization. Second, there are assumptions about the specific mission of the organization. Third, there are assumptions about the core competencies needed to accomplish the organization's mission. Drucker identifies four specifications to a valid theory of the business. First, the assumptions about environment, mission, and core competencies must fit reality. Second, the assumptions in all three areas have to fit one another. Third, the theory of the business must be known and understood throughout the organization. Fourth, the theory of the business has to be tested constantly. Some theories of the business are so powerful that they last for a long time, but they do not last forever. There is a need for building into the organization systematic monitoring and testing of its theory of the business. The author also introduces preventive measures (abandonment and walk-around management), early diagnosis (unexpected success and unexpected failure), and a cure (hard work and being conscientious). Drucker uses his traditional examples (IBM and General Motors) to explain matters.

This article is truly great in its simplicity, as most articles by Peter Drucker. It describes in simple terms why many new management techniques are designed primarily "how to do tools" and not in line with 'the theory of the business'. It explains in simple terms the strategy of an organization, provides specifications, and methods to cure an ill organization. The author uses simple US-English.

The Chinese have a proverb "first we have people who can recognise good horses, then we can have 1000-mile horses", suggesting wonderful things are everywhere, it only takes one who can appreciate wonders.

Drucker, in his unlikely autobiography, introduced some interesting and unforgettable characters at his times, entertains, educates and empowers us to think there are always equally interesting and unforgettable souls at our times, and probably at all times.

An enjoyable experience to have read this book, and more enjoyable experience when we can learn from him the passion and depth in appreciate people around us.

highly recommended.

Wonderful and a joy to read for anyone interested in the life and times of one of our best and among our first great management consultants. Drucker's stories are so enlightening in both a historical context and in terms of the develoment of the profession of management. Nothing has so thrilled me in appreciating this short history of western industrial civilization from the eyes of this original thinker. I review 10-20 books a year for different professional management journals but this is one of the most enjoyable as well as educational book I have ever read. Far beyond the work of Tom Peters and other known pundits, this is the work of a man with experience that easily transcends six decades. In a world of rush, rush and fads ad nauseaum this work is full of wisdom. Few other books would satisfy as well for anyone wanting to know about the man, his times and the forces that have created the management profession. Please tell Peter to get this book out to a wider audience and to bring several hundred copies to the 1998 Academy of Management meetings in San Diego this summer and I will try to bring my copy for his signature. This is the one book I have gotten up in the middle of the night to read just for the pure pleasure of reading. In fact last night at 4:30am I had to circle his commentary of "self governing workplace communities" so that in my own work I dont fail to cite the original source of ideas that many of us are researching and talking about today. Peter was only 50 years ahead of the field on this theme and I personally hope he will be around to help us develop these ideas for the next half century. ken

I laughed and I cried as I read Adventures of a Bystander. I have always had enormous respect for Professor Drucker, but this book has taken my respect and awe of him to another plateau. To learn how and what Professor Drucker thought as a child and how many momentous decisions he made by the time he was fourteen helps us understand him as a person and the environment from which all of his other works come. My grandmother also grew up in Austria and the "Grandmother stories" brought back very precious memories. Once again, even as a youngster, we see Professor Drucker uncannily knowing what will happen by studying (by living) the events of the times. One cannot really understand and appreciate Professor Drucker and his other works withour reading this book, and yet, reading many of his other works first, made me appreciate Adventures of a Bystander even more.

I enjoyed reading this book, especially because it focuses so much on anecdotes. I definitely understood Drucker's point that innovation and entrepreneurship come out of changes in the environment.

However, I believe Drucker missed the most important point, which is: What makes someone more able to exploit an opportunity than someone else? For example, he tells a story about how Ray Krok found out about McDonalds, bought it, and made it great. However, I thought he should have focused on why it was Ray Krok, and no one else, who saw the opportunity, rather than how he bought and made McDonalds. It is an entertaining read, but do not expect any lessons on how to be an entrepreneur.

This book is filled with insights about management. Peter Drucker considers innovation and entrepreneurship to be part of the executive's job. Drucker's premise is that the attitudes and skills of a successful entrepreneur can be cultivated and that the search for innovation can be systematized and managed.

This is my pick for the best business book of the 20th century. I have read this book three times, have taken extensive notes on it, and still learn a great deal with each re-reading. Peter Drucker has written many excellent business books, but this one shines. Unlike other books with "entrepreneurship" and "innovation" in their titles, this book does not go through the mechanics of setting or running up a business, but instead focuses on the essence of good business planning and practice.

For nearly half a century Peter Ferdinand Drucker (1909- ) has inspired and educated managers-and influenced the nature of business-with his landmark articles in the Harvard Business Review. Here, gathered together and framed by a thoughtful introduction from the Review's editor Nan Stone, is a priceless collection of his most significant work.

One of our leading thinkers on the practice and study of management, Drucker has sought out, identified, and examined the most important issues confronting managers, from corporate strategy to management style to social change. Through his unique lens, this volume gives us the rare opportunity to trace the evolution of the great shifts in our workplaces, and to understand more clearly the role of managers in the ongoing effort to balance change with continuity.

Now, these important articles and essays are strategically presented here to address two unifying themes: the first examines "The Manager's Responsibilities" while the second investigates "The Executive's World". Accompanied by an interview with Peter Drucker on "The Post-Capitalist Executive", as well as a thought-provoking preface by Peter Drucker himself, a complete picture of management theory and practice emerges, both as it was and as it will be.

Infused with a perspective that holds new relevance today, these essays represent Drucker at his best: direct, wise and challenging. Peter Drucker on the Profession of Management, sure to be studied, debated, and enjoyed by everyone concerned with management, everyone concerned with management, is a timely offering from one of the most respected and prolific authors to appear in the Harvard Business Review.

At 90, Peter Drucker is, by all accounts, the most enduring management thinker of our time. Born in Vienna, educated in Austria and England, he has worked since 1937 in the United States, first as an economist for a group of British banks and insurance companies, and later as a management consultant to several leading companies. Drucker has since had a distinguished career as a teacher, including more than twenty years as Professor of Management at the Graduate Business School of New York University. Since 1971 he has been Marie Rankin Clarke Professor of Social Science and Management at the Peter F. Drucker Graduate School of Management, Claremont Graduate University in California, where he still teaches in the fields of management and business policy. He is the founder of The Peter F. Drucker Foundation for Nonprofit Management, and has counseled numerous governments, public service institutions, and major corporations.

Drucker is a writer, teacher, and consultant with a long-term business perspective second to none. His twenty-nine previous books have been published in more than twenty languages and span sixty years of modern history beginning with The End of Economic Man (1939) and Managing in a Time of Great Change; Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices; Innovation and Entrepreneurship; The Effective Executive; Managing for Results and The Practice of Management. Nan Stone is the editor of the Harvard Business Review.

Reviewed by Azlan Adnan, Managing Partner of Azlan & Koh Knowledge and Professional Management Group, an education and management consulting practice based in Kota Kinabalu. Azlan has a MA in International Business and Management from the University of Westminster.

This is one of the most, thought provoking books, I've read this year. In the first part of the book, Business philopher, Peter Drucker protrays and verbally the business model of today, and highlights the necessary interactions of managers with the model. In the second part of the book, Drucker breaks away and reveals a series of startling revelations about today's business.

The theory of business is what Drucker, defines as "what a company gets paid for." Drucker states when big companies get in trouble they blame "complacency, arrogance, mammoth bureacracies", as a plausible explanations. However, the problem's root causes are rarely identified and the prevously stated explanations are rarely right. Most companies fail, to perform well, at what they get paid for.

Drucker defines the parts of the business environment, as: environment (society and its structure and the market), mission (customer ), (core competencies) and technology. Why is this important? The assumptions about environment, mission, and core competencies must fit together. Drucker drives home the point by contrasting the sucess of non-profit organizations with profit organizations, stating we can learn from the success of non-profit organizations, namely: well define mission, lack of deep management hierarchy, individual responsiblity, a deep understand of individual roles and purposes, and cohension between expectations and results. Secondly, the theory of business must be known and understood through out the business. Drucker stresses the importance of learning from the non-customer. And Lastly, the theory of business must be tested constantly.

The Effective Decision process involves the follow sequence of steps: 1. Classify the problem 2. Define the problem 3. Specify the answer to the problem 4. Decide what is right rather than what is acceptable 5. Build into the decision the action to carry it out 6. and test the validity and effectiviness of the decision against the actual course of events. This is an high level sketch outlining a model for effective decision.

Drucker provides two methods, to help make, people decisions. The two creative approaches are: determine if the right people has right qualifications, perceptions, and talents; and make sure the individual understands the job. The first approaches advocates careful selection of the individual, by determining, how well the candidate fits the job assignment. The second approach measures the new manager's understanding of the job. The process requests, the new manager to write on paper, what they think will make them sucessful, in their job. Senior management reads the paper to determine, if the manager has grasped an understanding, of the job, and revalidates their decison about the individual being the right person, for the job.

The discipline of innovation encourages managers to separate the reasons for successful management, into two groups: systematic and non-systematic innovation. Both systematic and Non-systematic opportunies exist within an company or industry because of unexpected occurences, incongruties, process needs, and industry and market changes. Systematic innovation begins by analyizing the sources of opportunity. Innovation is perceptual and conceptual by definition and innovators must go out look, ask, and listen. Effective innovations start small. Small Innovations can lead to large implementations. Without innovation the company will go out of business. Innovation keeps a company competitive in the market and capable of meeting customer needs.

Technology has created a great diversity of information. In order for a manager, to be effective, managers need to identify the information they need to effective perform their jobs.

The world is moving to a society of organizations. Companies are moving to global economies of scale. People interact with various organizations to achieve results. Because of this new organization theory, outsourcing is preferred when no direct management hierarchy exists to a Vice President. Outsourcing provides high skill specialist, management, and senior management. Companies are achieving better results organizationally by outsourcing business process where possible.

Management is responsible for creating the knowledge worker. Historically, significant increasing in productivity were the result of a management core build established. Management is responsible for building the skilled worker. Organizations are made up of individuals, who have a high degree of technical skill and knowledge. Information must be convert into knowledge and manager's communication ability dictates the level of effectiviness in using the skilled worker's knowledge. Organizations represent a network of specialists, rather than a strong command and control heirarchy. However, technology of itself does not increase productivity.

How do managers increase productivity? Managers increase productive by helping the knowledge worker to work smarter - not harder. Management creates the knowledge worker by empower them with specialized skills and knowledge. Productivity gaps are closed through training. Management must decide who gets trained. Training the right people increase the worker's capability, compensation, and productivity. Performance can only be achieved by the worker working smarter not harder. Only ten percent of the work is effectively and producing ninety percent of the productivity and profit. Thus, over ninety percent of the work is ineffective. It is management's responsibility to reduce this inefficiency. Drucker will later introduce his activity oriented decision model to help managers reduce the amount of inefficiency.

Managers are responsible for creating and maintaining their carreer path. Receiving a higher education degree and employment, in a large company does not guarentee retirement, with the company. Managers are responsible for designing and maintaining their career. Fragmentation of purpose and thought must be overcome to reduce confusion and losses. Knowledge workers must learn how to produce. This requires the knowledge work to remain current, with changes, in the business environment. Their contribution in large part depends on the knowledge workers ability to adapt and learn smarter ways to produce.

Activity Oriented Decision model prevents loses and failures. Activity Oriented decisions combine value analysis, risk analysis, quality analysis, and process analysis, into one. Decisions resulting from managers who follow the activity oriented decision model don't risk losing capital. The combination of the various information sources, associated with the activity oriented decision helps the manager understand the potential value of the venture, the potential value, the risks of failure, and the cost of modifying or implement new processes, and the long term affects on quality in the organization.

The activity oriented decision model is a conceptually definition and the practical discipline proposed exciting possiblities. Activies are analyzed, defined, and sequenced. Resources are allocated to the activity. The activity outcomes are measured to determine, if they are meeting requirements. Managers weight the risks by asking "what are the benefits of the activity?","What are the fallout impacts for failure to implement the activity?", and "what are the impacts to the organization long term by implementing the activity?"

Analysis of the process, results in time and budget allocation estimates. Schedules provide time lines and sequences linked to a resources. Managers must coordination various organizations to gain access to a resource. A resource represents a individual in a specialize field of knowledge. Communication and coordination are necessary to effectively manage various resources, so each individual understands, what is expected and what to produce. Budgets and time provide the boundary of the activity problem. Its possible to have a budget or schedule which exceeds the boundary of the problem, making the activity unfeasible. To avoid this problem, the manager must provide clear objectives to be developed and maintained. The objectives scope must stay within a predefined problem boundary.

Peter F. Drucker is known as the "management guru's management guru". The articles in this book explain the reason. Each article is a landmark in the field of management.

In the preface Drucker shows why he has become so famous. He shows his strength of recognising trends and how these trends will affect business, people, and society. This preface is followed by a short introduction from the editor.

The book consists of two Parts, The Manager's Responsibilities and The Executive's World, with each consisting of 6 Harvard Business Review-articles (out of 32 articles and growing). The book also includes an interesting preface, an introduction by Harvard Business Review-editor Nan Stone, and an interview with Peter Drucker.

In Part I - The Manager's Responsibilities, the articles discuss the managerial responsibilities of the manager, although Drucker prefers the term "executive". The articles discuss general management such as the decision-making process, effective management, strategic management, and innovation.

Part II - The Executive's World, Drucker discusses the history of management, the transformation from the traditional command-and-control model to knowledge-based organizations, information technology, and non-profit management.

The book concludes with an interview with Peter Drucker, which is based on his 1995-book 'Post-Capitalist Society'.

The book deserves the five-star rating since each article is fantastic. Perhaps some of them overlap, but it is amazing that some of the articles written in the 1960s are still very valid today. Drucker's writing style is simple US-English.

drucker understands the politico-economic realities that drive us all nuts, but he measures it up with magnanimity. the knowledge society--for a knowledge worker his description can actually be somewhat humbling. no more comparing yourself to the laborers as if you've risen above. you depend on others for your living and various forces work against you. i love the way drucker shrugs off government stupidity. he sees through all the hype and hubris, but neither complains nor lectures. ok, sometimes he's a bit dry or bombastic. the originator of the business book style, so cut him some slack.

In Peter Druckers book, "Post Capitalistic Society", he identifies two types of workers: the service oriented worker and the knowledge worker. The knowledge worker produces magnitudes of scale more value to any organization. A knowledge worker represents the "Brains" of an organization. They know how to setup company infrastructure, keep it going, and improve upon its structure.

Capital is not as important as knowledge. Capital by itself does not create wealth, innovation, or increases to productivity. Knowledge produces ideas, innovations, efficiency, and productivity.

A knowledge worker can create a idea without capital, knowledge is brain power. Once the idea is realized, funders provide capital floods transforming the idea into process or product. Knowlege provides an incredible economic company potential. Remove the knowledge worker and growth stops, systems and processes stagnate. Reduce the number of service workers and operations become more efficient. Historically, as service workers number decrease their tasks and output have increased proportionate to their numbers. Basically, the service worker were expected to "Do More with less".

Knowledge represents the whole expertise in domains of finance, information, policy, management, etc.. The knowledge worker generates the "Ideas". Ideas are transformed into processes and systems. Its principles of creativity and credibility which provides trust in the idea. Drucker concludes that knowledge itself is profitable. In the post capitalistic society knowledge produces wealth. Knowledge increase productivity. The sum of knowledge in a domain increases productivity and growth exponentially. Its this radically breakaway phenomenia which knowledge produces providing wealth and growth to an organization.

Drucker and Toffler agree on one important idea: fiscal and monetary policy is no longer the real driver for national prosperity. At best it is a place-holder, a means of keeping the economy stable. There is a strong element of accountability throughout the book, first with respect to the managers of governments and corporations, and finally with the managers of schools that must ultimately be held accountable for producing students who are competent at both learning and sharing knowledge. For Drucker, the organization of the post-capitalist society must commit itself to being a destabilizer able to change constantly. "It must be organized for systematic abandonment of the established, the customary, the familiar, the comfortable-whether products, services, processes, human and social relationships, skills, or organizations themselves. It is the very nature of knowledge that it changes fast and that today's certainties will be tomorrow's absurdities." So speaketh Drucker of the U.S. Intelligence Community....